PAC Chairman, Julius Espat, Not Impressed with Petrocaribe

Debate over the controversial continues to heat up, with the unions, churches and business sector all coming out squarely against it. The P.U.P. has as well, and later you’ll see the V.I.P. lashing out at what they say is a tyrannical government. The outcry is picking up momentum, which means that government has had to ramp up the propaganda and political spin. Financial Secretary Joseph Waight and U.D.P. Legal Advisor Michael Young have been chosen to head the P.R. offensive with media appearances this week. One man who isn’t impressed, or convinced, is Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee Julius Espat. He told News Five that he doesn’t believe in listening to attorneys and government operatives who are speaking based on an agenda and not on facts.

Julius Espat

Julius Espat, Chairman, Public Accounts Committee

“What they’re saying in my opinion has no validity. It’s just what we call a spin-master move to try to have the people of Belize believe that they’re doing something that is credible when everybody…absolutely everybody knows that it is not credible, it is not true, and it is unlawful. The reality is that this Bill was passed because the Prime Minister himself made a reform to this Finance and Audit Act in 2008 where he placed criminal charges on anybody who would circumvent that law and it is only there so that the Prime Minister is saved from the same reform that he put in place. In fact I was looking at some of the news items last night when they said you know something, if after this we find out that anything is wrong with what we’re doing it is the public officers that will have to pay. You see the mentality behind this? They are trying to protect the politicians but they’re willing to put the public servants they give instructions to, to take the fall. And that is where it is really wrong, and that is the fight we have. Our fight is really a fight to save democracy. When a Prime Minister of a country can go to these levels to pass these draconian laws that are not for the benefit of the Belizean people, then we all have to join together as one – the independent parties, the People’s United Party, the media, the social partners have to come together because this is about the future of the country.”

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Barrow got caught stealing big time and now uses democratic tyrannical tools to whitewash and save his hide from criminal prosecution with the help of the know-nothing, feckless Financial Secretary who has reached the retirement age anyway. They must be kicked out politicians and venal civil servants who don’t know when to leave.